Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity – Bringing Hispanic Consumers to the Forefront
June 29, 2024
By Claudia Romo Edelman
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity — that brings together the world’s most important brands, agencies and their work, media, tech and production companies — has become a critical part of how we keep the importance of Latinos a front-and-center issue in the business sector and make tangible inroads in driving our inclusion and progress. Everyone we need to reach and persuade in marketing is there. This year we are more united and organized as a community there. We feel the strength of our mission and agenda. We have a full program and great partners.
As we do each year, the We are All Human Foundation is armed with data that shows how our young and fast-growing population are not only important consumers now, but really hold the key to future growth. We already have a $3.4 trillion purchasing power. We contribute $3.2 billion dollars to the economy, a GDP that would place us as the 5th largest economy in the world if counted on its own. We are already a sizable 20% of the population now. By 2030, we will be one third of the US population.
For brands, now is the time to really forge strong relationships with Latinos. The problem, however, is that, according to our 2023 Hispanic Sentiment Study, Latinos feel excluded, fragmented and invisible. We feel disregarded and undervalued by big brands and media. The drop from five years ago, when we first fielded the study, is sizable. In 2018, 54% of Latinos felt their values were represented by big brands; today only 45% do. That is a glaring red flag.
If you earn our trust, your brands will be rewarded with sales and loyalty that can last a lifetime. Hispanics are looking for authentic connections with brands. We are looking for a brand’s communications to reflect diversity. And there is really only one way to get this all right, by making sure that Latinos are involved. The question is no longer why or what but how. And worry not, the roadmap is clear. What’s more, the Hispanic Promise, which the We Are All Human Foundation first launched in 2019, offers all the resources, support and community you need to meet the challenges of the future.
And speaking of challenges, top-of-mind for everyone is AI. AI is seeping into every discussion, every plan, every strategy this year. There are real considerations about AI and Latinos — both the opportunity and the risks. AI has the capacity to bridge or widen the gap when it comes to stereotyping Latinos. We have come prepared, with strong information, opinions, and ideas for how to make AI a positive.
What I see right now is concerning. If I generate five images of doctors, not a single one will look Latino. That tells me that the back end doesn’t have the right data, and invisibility is as damaging as stereotypes are. As the marketing industry more and more depends on AI, we have to make sure it is well-educated and informed, not just hitting the low bar of avoiding extremes.
Here, too, inclusion is the answer to creating authentic diversity. The truth is you can’t make it about us without us. Representation matters in AI as much as it does in the physical world. Latinos are the most digital savvy population, we lead all other groups for tech startups. Make this as an opportunity to hire, and as we have the largest youth population, create the opportunity to recruit and train young Latinos looking to make career choices. Many fear that AI will cost them their jobs. Turn the risk into an opportunity to diversify AI technology as a path to a product that will be more productive because it is reaching a larger, more diversified population.
My message to CMOs is to build, invest and commit fully to a Latino strategy. Latinos are the future and you can be the hero architect of a Latino strategy, or you can ignore the future and be overwhelmed by it. Connect the dots – the time is now.
At the moments when I worry about the future of Latinos, I take stock of the progress we have made. We are huge contributors to the economy. Great consumers. We are driving prosperity and progress. I truly believe that with Latinos, everything is possible. I look forward to forging new and stronger alliances at Cannes. Together, we can really unleash the potential of the Latino community, build better brands that drive greater revenue and profits. The growth we can achieve when we work together with business will be felt around the world.
If you are at Cannes, we will be easy to find, have lots of activities, and we would love to talk.
